Talking Climate also con­tains a series of more focused sum­maries of research on spe­cific aspects of sus­tain­able beha­viour. Targeting social net­works is an important but often neg­lected method of influ­en­cing sus­tain­able beha­viour. This guide describes the best research on how to use social net­works and social norms to encourage not only indi­viduals but groups and com­munities to engage in more sus­tain­able pat­terns of behaviour.

Lots of beha­viours do not involve con­scious decisions – they are habits, which means they can be tricky to change. But one area of psy­cho­lo­gical research on how to break bad habits and create new ones provides cru­cial guid­ance for tar­geting beha­viours that are not ‘deliberate’.

A new approach that goes beyond social mar­keting – and is rap­idly growing in pop­ularity – starts from the idea that chan­ging beha­viours is impossible unless you begin with people’s per­sonal values. All cam­paigns speak to cer­tain values, and all mes­sages are framed in a par­tic­ular way. Getting to grips with the right values and frames for pro­moting sus­tain­able atti­tudes and beha­viours is essen­tial for any cli­mate change communicator.